SkillsOne News – TAFE NSW Northern Sydney Institute host Hospitality Industry Leaders Forum

On Monday the 6th of June industry leaders met at TAFE NSW Northern Sydney Institute to discuss the complex problem within hospitality and travel,the impact of apprenticeship completion rates in Australia reported at 46%.
In attendance were representatives from a wide range of industry groups as well as high profile restaurant owners and chefs and current apprentices.

Throughout the course of the afternoon Brian Wexham, CEO of SkillsOne facilitated a discussion to explore what can be done to increase completion rates amongst apprentices.
It was evident a great deal of research had been conducted into studying why apprentices fail to complete. Some research suggested that it was ‘life that got in the way’ and not the quality of training.

Consistently apprentices sighted the major reason for non-completions as difficulties with their employer – this lead to some robust commentary. However, and indeed interestingly the Navy estimated their completion rates to be much higher, above 70%. When questioned as to why, they sighted mentoring, training, motivation and discussion as vital ingredients within the apprenticeship period. What was realized on the day was the lack of research that centered on why apprentices actually do complete.

There was a clear focus on the strong link between training and industry, and just how important mentoring is as a method of retaining apprentices. This can be seen by the great results of the Appetite for Success program, which teams young chefs with industry professionals to explore the transition from study to full time employment through a strong focus on mentoring.
Looking forward it is clear that this is a complex issue that requires further discussion. TAFE along with industry are committed to further investigation and importantly implementing strategies to improve completion rates. It is important to focus on the positive message of why apprentices actually do complete and work on strengthening these factors with the use of mentoring.